Cameron58

1999 Jeep Cherokee Sport, 6 cyl, 4l.

I installed a new radiator and connected everything. But, when I tried to put on the metal plate that goes on top of the rad, it would not go on.

Problem is there are six threaded pins sticking up on top of the rad. These are supposed to go through the metal plate. The holes in the metal plate do no line up with the pins. This is an OEM rad, supposedly.

So, how important is it that these pins go through the plate and have a nut on top. Would it make any difference if I simply cut them off?

I suppose I could try to drill holes in the metal plate, but I'm not sure how to figure out exactly where to drill the holes. Any suggestions on how to figure that out?

Any advice will be appreciated. I'm a novice mechanic, but I'm determined to get this done. Thanks.

Cameron58

I just had another idea. There are two bolts at each end of the radiator. Can i remove those, remove the metal piece from the top of the old rad, and transfer it to the new rad?

djb383

I wouldn't cut anything....if you have the correct rad and u are re-installing everything correctly, everything should bolt back up. The radiator must be supported correctly.

Cameron58

I got the rad from Radiator Barn. It must be the correct one. I used their product selector to find the correct rad for my car. But, the configuration of the top of the new rad is different from the old rad.

DieselD

You should be able to remove the rubber mounts that hold the studs off the old rad and put them on the new one.

I had the same issue before, that's how I solved it.

Cameron58

Not sure what you mean. I don't have any rubber parts on the old rad or the new one.

dmill89

If your "old" radiator was a previous aftermarket replacement this may be the case. The OE radiator and most replacements(including the CSF ones) had six studs to which rubber isolators mounted and went through the holes on the upper radiator support. Some aftermarket rads had 2 or 4 studs which went through the upper support and were secured with a nut instead. If you need the rubber isolators you should be able to get them at the dealer or order them from here:
http://www.factorychryslerparts.com/.../52002585.html


I had this issue when I put my CSF 3-row rad in, the old rad was an aftermarket replacement (single row) and did not have the isolators, I ran it for several weeks without the insulators so it shouldn't hurt anything, you will just get she excess vibration/noise from the studs hitting the upper support without them.

Cameron58

Yes, the rad I replaced was an aftermarket replacement. I don't know the brand. The new one is a CSF with the six studs. The problem is I put the metal plate in place on top of the rad, and all six of the studs hit the underside of the plate. None of them line up with the holes in the plate.

I just looked at the rads for my Jeep sold on partstrain.com. All of them, from the low end ones to the expensive ones have the six studs.

And ok, confession time. When I was trying to get the metal plate in place I though the stud closest to tank on each end of the rad would line up with a hole. So I cut off the other four. Then I found that the two studs left would not line up with a hole. So have I ruined this rad?

dmill89

I'd try to weld or epoxy the studs back on, if you can't do that you could buy the insulators and epoxy them directly to the top bar on the rad, you just won't be able to remove them, so you'll have to buy them again if you ever need to replace the rad again.

Cameron58

Well, I see the problem. I do have the insulators on top of the old rad. Didn't even notice that. I have on stud left on the new rad for each insulator. They may not be in the right place. I think I cut off the ones I need to use. I may end up buying a new rad. At least the one I "modified" is a cheap one. Problem solved. Major lesson learned. Thanks for all the responses.